I’ve made the most out of this rather trying last year or so since the switch with The Peak at Co-op Radio.

I’ve had to come up with ingenius methods of getting new music on the air, as a lot of it is in digital form, and relying on the internet too much can be pure folly.

I’ve used my digital player/recorder to put sets of music together, as I’m either setting up a live act, or searching for info online. It’s been a handy machine, even though it is very delicate, and the mics have fallen out of it. It’s still good for recording and playing music online and on-air. Without it, I would be screwed. haha

Since the upgrades have yet to be put in place, such as: an off-line computer program to drag and drop tracks into a play-list, and put on ‘auto-pilot’ when needed….and the fact I don’t have the luxury of having everything on CD ,or any one format, this has been the drill. haha

Since we’re moving again ,in June of this new year 0f 2014, the strides for a permanent set up for live music, and equipment upgrades has been put on hold.

The Portland Hotel Society, which owns the building, is in the process of undergoing renovations to the former Sunrise Hotel, which means Co-op has to find a new place ,for a year or so or longer, since we can’t stay during the renovations. Though we can come back in year or so.

I’m hoping we find another, better place we can stay at, and not move back, as the on-air studios at our current location on Columbia street, are too small for full on live bands.

Furthermore, the set up in the current control room would have to be altered ,once again, to accommodate a permanent live music set up, if we were to move back.

I’m not the first one to suggest we get out of the downtown eastside and move somewhere closer to the districts of Commercial drive or South Main, if we can find rent which isn’t too rediculous.

Rents are starting to sky-rocket in the downtown eastside and ,not to mention, programmers and guests at Co-op Radio, are growing a little tired of having to constantly be careful not to hit people in the ass, sitting on the stoop in front of Co-op’s front door on their way out of the station.

I’ll keep my fingers crossed and hope we get a place where the upgrades, and more live music, can finally be fully realized.

It all started in 1997, when all we had to mix live acts was the crappy old Co-op on-air board.

Hardly the board to mix live acts with.

It was a radio broadcast board ,( barely ), only really meant for announcing and stereo audio equipment like turntables, CD players, cassette players and reel to reel players.

I was stuck using “it” for live bands. It sounded like crap. hahahahaha

I had no budget ( neither did the station-probably STILL doesn’t ) for live sound equipment.

So I had to beg, borrow or steal equipment like stands, cables, mics and ,the best I could do at the time, a cheap Radio Shack mixing board I used for my less thanmomentous radio career. hahaha

Oh, it was interesting ,to say the least, mixing live acts with this thing. Note only quarter-inch inputs and the other 2 inputs were RCA.

It worked alright with acoustic acts and you could get away with using adaptors on the last 2 RCA channels. But it was not a first class set up.

But then, what do you expect from a station that rather fails to see the value of presenting live music ,and properly, on the air.

You would think with the importance of giving independent Canadian talent a place to be heard and exposed, at least a small budget of a couple of grand would eventually be put aside in not making Co-op radio an embarrassment with live sound.

Next came ,with my own money of course, in 1999, The Sunn SR-6100 mono mixer from The Captain’s Place.

It was a step up with 6 XLR ( industry standard mic inputs ), a monitor input, basic EQ and spring reverb. It did the job for quite some.

Till about 2002. Some of the best sessions I did ,when Co-op was still in mono, were mixed on that handy ,fairly bulky, mixer amp: Colorifics, Lilyfrost, Bocephus King, Rich Hope, Veda Hille, Bughouse 5, John Ford, Circus In Flames, etc.

But the ole board was falling apart.

I luckily got to know a sound engineer named Martin Jordanov.

He was long time soundman for a group called The Orchid Highway amongst a long list of other acts.

He fixed the Sunn board as best as he could, as it was on its last legs.

Then, it broke down for good around 2004 or so.

I was without a decent board for a while.

Then Martin had some spare mics, cables, stands and a board that wasn’t bad ,but, took up too much room in the control room: A Berhringer Eurorack 24, even though it had only 16 XLR inputs on it.

It was alright ,but, didn’t have effects built in, and the extra equipment like digital compressor, digital effects and such made it too complicated a set up for a live music show that rarely had more than a half an hour to set up-while the canned music was running.

It also didn’t help Berhringer was held in pretty bad regard with musicians, engineers and such for making cheap copies of other people’s designs.

The older Eurorack ,pictured above, wasn’t a bad board. It just wasn’t practical for live, on-air sound in a control room that had limited table space.

So, eventually after much deliberation, I settled on a used board of the Allen & Heath variety: The Mix Wizard 16.

I recently took some time to look over some of the acts that have recently either: (A) Gone to the next level or (B) Become famous ,for better or worse, who have been featured on Radio Bandcouver, ( Weds. 3:30-5pm on Co-op Radio 102.7 FM / online coopradio.org ), in past 15 years.

I remember Dan Mangan’s first EP In 2003 called All at Once. I don’t remember liking it too much. I thought he had potential ,but, it wasn’t until his second release “Postcards & Daydreaming“, originally in the summer of 2005, that I thought something was happening here. Songs like “Not What You Think It Is”, “Journal Of A Narcoleptic”, and “Fabulous” really stuck out.

But, I had no idea he was going to make as big a noise as he has in recent years. There was no early indication in 2003. I believe constant touring and the fact that certain commercial radio stations picked up on what he was doing, helped tremendously.

Unfortunately, being the first to play him and have him play live on Co-op radio’s “Radio Bandcouver” years ago, doesn’t account for much.

There’s a habit of dwelling on how good Co-op had it with live music “back in the day”, and giving very little credit to what the current live indie music shows have done for live music in Vancouver.

Maybe the fact that the presentation of live music ,( either on location and in the Co-op studios), on the air has shrunk continually over the years, is the reason for the fall in financial support for the local music shows.

There doesn’t seem to be a lot of concern that: since the Glass Slipper burnt down, and programmers who presented live music have left over the years, that there is a considerable void that hasn’t been filled for live music since at Co-op radio.

Maybe if you brought some of it back, our listenership would increase. Not everybody wants to hear nothing but public affairs all the time.

(((( Remember, Co-op Radio is trading places with a MUSIC station on September 10th. ))))

Also not having live music very often on the air, can make Co-op radio a dull place.

Shows like: “She-Boom!”, “No Apologies Necessary”, “Front Row Center” , “Into The Pit”. and ,of course, “Radio Bandcouver”, deserve some credit for sticking it out for as long, as they have with no budget and shrinking financial support.

These shows are putting in an honest effort, informing people about current and eclectic acts which fall outside the ‘traditional’ realm, and don’t receive support from the big stations.

I know the acts I play on Radio Bandcouver aren’t getting airplay on the big stations. I check their play-lists at least once a week. So don’t try to tell me otherwise. hahaha

Even when they do play the odd act, they only play the most commercially viable of their songs, and in most cases, only 1 or 2 of them.

I respect what’s been done in the past at Co-op ,but, let’s get with the now, please. Just because we’re not ‘hardcore traditionalists’, doesn’t mean we’re idiots.

Many of the local/ indie music shows have been around for 15 years or more. I know you have to “check your ego at the door” ,but, let’s give credit where credit is due for local music, and give shows like this more support: morally and financially. We’re not asking a lot of money here.

Back with the tour:

Dan Mangan’s completely deserving of his success. I obviously don’t play him as often as I used to. Not to spite him. It’s the fact there’s other acts to discover that the big stations will never give the time of day to.

But, that doesn’t mean I won’t have him in to play live on the air again. Dan’s welcome to do so anytime.

The big stations are too hung up on demographics, familiarity, Billboard and YouTube hits to make any decisions on their own.

That is one advantage of producing Radio Bandcouver every Wednesday afternoon ( 3:30-5pm 102.7 FM/ online @ http://www.coopradio.org ) Although not many take advantage of it.

Back with the tour:

Mother Mother have taken the next big step after 7 years of slogging away. I’ve been playing them since they were just called Mother.

I even had them in to perform live, and announce their name change when their debut was re-released with added electric instruments and drums, and renamed “Touch Up”.

The re-release also saw several new songs replacing several songs that were on the original 2005 release, which is worth searching out by the way.

I have to admit I didn’t like their follow up “Eureka” as much. I also miss Debra Jean Creelman on vocals.

She left the band to seek her own creative endeavors like Debra Jean & the Means. I like her material a lot. It’s edgy and very musically satisfying.

I did get the feeling she was aching to strike out on her own musical journey when she was in Mother Mother. The parting was amicable and all is well.

One of their earlier songs which goes back to their original 2005 album called “Mother”. This is the closest I got. hee hee.

And now: The most bizarre change of fate that was revealed on Radio Bandcouver years ago: Carly Rae Jepson!

I’m not a fan of ‘Call Me Maybe” ,but, I wish her the best anyway. When I had her on the show, this was when she first had shows at The Media Club. One such show was opening for Lilyfrost and Kinnie Starr. I still have the poster and the flyer for the show.

She had a star quality to her that was evident even back then. IMU Productions, a music promotion and booking company with whom I’ve been postering for and helping promote gigs for the better part of 10 years, were probably the first to book her shows ( and most likely Dan Mangan’s ).

It’s mind-blowing seeing what happened with her over the last few years. She was a Top 3 finalist on “Canadian Idol” and then was signed to a major and is now getting the hell played out of her.

I can also include others that have, more or less, made the next level whom I’ve played over the years: Geoff Berner ,( back to his Terror Of Tiny town days ), Rich Hope, Be Good Tanyas, Bocephus King, Hey Ocean!, Bend Sinister, Headwater and Adeline to name a scent few.

Now, I think an independent music show that has been there for 3 of the most popular indie acts in the country, deserves a little more respect and a little more financial support.

Radio Bandcouver is on Co-op Radio. It is a stand-alone community radio station. It doesn’t get government funding like CBC does. It is not part of a university or campus. So it doesn’t receive money from a student union.

It gets its money from listeners like yourself.

Programmers ,like myself, volunteer our time there. We aren’t paid the big bucks to do what we do. Though we should be, as we play a wider variety of talent and put a lot of work into our shows.

It absolutely floors me how so little of the money that comes into Co-op goes to any particular radio show.

Being specific as to which show your money’s going to helps tremendously. The money coming in to Co-op radio isn’t evenly distributed. That’s not the way it works.

Money is put towards the show that people mention as their favourite show.

The programmers, like myself, don’t get the money. The station does.

The station has had a zero budget for live music for a long time. Thankfully that’s ,( hopefully ), changing somewhat now with our new engineer, Anju, and her crew.

Everything I’ve done, live in the studio, is the result of equipment I’ve either acquired from sound engineer Martin Jordanov at Pro-Spec Production, ( formerly JMS ) ,later on in about 2001, or equipment I’ve had to pony up the money for myself since 1997.

Martin’s crew did sound for the Crab Park July 1st Festival every year by the way. A free, all ages event, 1-4pm at the North foot of Main Street.

I think a radio show that goes to those lengths to present live music since 1997, deserves a little boost.

People have asked me why I haven’t moved to CBC, or commercial stations like The Peak, ( whom we’re changing FM frequencies with Sept 10.), or The Shore with my radio show. It’s for the simple reason that they would not allow me to do or play what I want.

Back to the financial reality of the program:

A minimum $20 every 6 months from the thousands (?) of listeners towards Radio Bandcouver staying on the air, is not a lot to ask for a better local music support system.

604-684-8494 is the number. You can also pick up a Co-op Radio Listener’s Guide at most public libraries in Vancouver, or you can do it online at coopradio.org.

Don’t forget Radio Bandcouver sent you. Cheers and thanks for your support.

101 CFMI in better days. Till about 89-90, it was a fun radio station to listen to, with on-air people with actual personality. And: ‘Discumentary’, which actually educated you about music.

Coast’s first logo back in late 1990. For 3 short years, Vancouver radio was worth listening to again. Coast including radio vets JB Shayne & Long John Tanner and offered the kind of music programming that seems impossible to offer now.

______-We’re All Responsible For Radio’s Downfall-______

If there’s one thing that I find completely futile, it’s people’s constant theory that big corporations and musically challenged hacks are the sole reason for radio’s downfall.

Yes, Vancouver radio is pretty much based on programming put together by a bunch of musically-challenged jackasses, with a very LIMITED SCOPE and REFERENCE POINT of where music comes from, from corporate America, forcing the dullest of the lot on our airwaves.

Music radio, at one time, was about appreciating , enjoying and learning about music, not feeding your own selfish ego, and satisfying only the corporate agenda.

All we add to this musical ‘tunnel vision’, is to throw in the odd third rate Canadian artist to satisfy the CRTC’s ‘Canadian Content’ legislation. Yet another ego driven, musically ignorant entity. Legislated mediocrity.

But guess what? They’re not the only ones responsible for radio being the non-creative, musical wasteland it’s been since the mid 80’s.

The public is too. They’ve became lazy, and have left all the responsibility of finding new music on the dial, to the corporations, a bunch of accountants, and dollar pinching cretins, whose passion for music is the equivalent of buying a pair of shoes.

A pathetic attitude like this is the sole reason radio has sucked for decades in Vancouver.

People seem to want to be spoon-fed a limited number of ditties, which the corporations then tie to crappy products that are not worth wasting money on.

The people that run the airwaves, don’t give a damn about you, Joe and Jill public. As a matter of fact, they’re laughing at you.

They revel in the fact they have you so easily hooked on the worse music and products available.

Do you really think EVERYBODY thinks a musically instrument is no longer relevant?

Do you really think all new music has to be CRAP?

There is good music out there. Or ,at least, music that doesn’t follow the same ‘cookie-cutter’ formula the regular radio stations pummel you with.

There has been ever since radio decided to erase practically all level of musical taste, and/or any semblance of creative, intelligent, meaningful or useful programming.

I am extremely disappointed at taking an overpriced radio course, ( the company that offered it is long gone, as is the head crook ), and having to participate in an era of radio that’s at an all time low.

—-I don’t find it inspiring, when all that matters is selling an inferior product.—-

Good music ,or music that offers something more satisfying, has long since been tossed on the scrapheap, and people just sit idly by, letting it happen.

Gadgets like the i-phones, smart-phones, i-pads, and whatever other inferior toys the big corporations can offer to distract the public, have blurred people’s judgement and musical taste to some extent.

I ,for one, have been very critical of the big stations and the industry in general, and have let them know about it for years.

The insipid QM-FM for instance. They PAY business to have their crappy station blaring in their establishments.

Don’t get me started on the painfully unimaginative, limited and dim view of new music presented by both The Beat & Sonic. Absolute SLAVES to corporate American ‘cookie cutter crap’.

I still think the last time Vancouver had a new music radio station to brag about was in the early 90’s with Coast 800 and 1040.

Unlike any other radio station ,before or since, they supported the local music scene, and played a much wider variety from it.

Ever since Coast’s demise, regular radio station listeners have nowhere near the knowledge of what’s happening in the local music scene.

And yes, there still IS one.

Co-op radio is there ,but, they fail in not having the audience numbers needed ,for their local music shows, to be anywhere near effective as Coast was.

It’s difficult to say whether the swap with The Peak in early-September will change the situation for the better ,but, one can hope.

What made Coast all the most extraordinary, was the fact that it was the most musically savvy radio station, and it was on AM.

The FM stations had long since gone down the toilet since the mid 80’s, with one exception just before Coast: CFMI.

CFMI was Vancouver’s first “Adult Alternative Station’ in the 80’s.

It was a very entertaining station to listen to till about 89-90, when it stupidly switched to a more limited play-list with the ‘Classic Rock’ format.

I like older music as well. Just not the same limited number of tunes over and over again each day. A constant annoyance people seem so willing to swallow even decades later.

People have been gently brainwashed into thinking: “This is the way radio should be. This is the way music should sound. It’s been like this for decades, so it’s the way to do it.”

I beg to differ. I think more listeners should too. It’s time more people got on their radio stations and their sponsors and demanded better radio.

****The best music station on the planet! Bar None!**** A station where you can still learn something about music: new and old!

I think the fact Vancouver can’t have a radio station anywhere near what BBC 6 Music is, is a crime.

***Radio in Vancouver has gone over the same tired ground long enough to not think something like a 6 Music type station on the regular dial would work.***

The only way it wouldn’t work would be the fact that any self-respecting music fan goes on-line to hear music, as regular radio has been insipid for so long.

The Peak and The Shore seemed like a slight change from the regular, boring routine of Vancouver radio, but, compared with BBC 6, they’re not in the same league at all.

I know you have to worry about ‘Canadian Content’. That’s not the issue here.

The issue is offering music radio that excites the listener, and gives them much more choice than is usually offered on the regular dial in Vancouver.

And that choice is extremely narrow. It’s time it was widened. It’s time people realize they have just as much influence on radio as the corporations do.

Don’t be apathetic and don’t accept the inferior programming offered to you by people who don’t care about music….or you.

I have to admit, I do find it annoying that I also MUST have a blog to justify the existence of my long running Radio Band-couver show, as well as my facebook, twitter, youtube, soundcloud, daily motion, hype machine and gawd knows what else I have signed up for I’ve forgotten. haha

Back with the tour: Band-cover is a radio show that’s been scraping away, telling you where you can see live/local acts in Vancouver, having acts in to play live on the air, as well as: attending local live music shows, booking bands at small watering holes, and doing sound at small venues ,on and off, for 15 years. Band-couver definitely doesn’t just play the music and then goes home. haha

All this, in and around a radio station, that’s still depressingly obscure, called Vancouver Co-operative radio at 102.7 FM. Wednesdays 3:30-5pm pacific time, and online at http://www.cooradio.org.

To make the show, and what I’ve been doing for such a rediculously long time, sound more impressive to someone who isn’t familiar with the local music scene in Vancouver, ( and many still aren’t ), I’ve aired music by such people as Mother Mother, Dan Mangan, Rich Hope and others YEARS before a station like The Peak was even a thought. I have to say, I prefer BBC’s 6 Music ,but, that’s another story.

I’ve also aired a myriad of acts ,local and not so local, that Vancouver radio would never think of airing: old and new.

So the field is a lot wider with what I play on the show. But I have to be honest: I’m not the biggest hip hop fan. Although I have aired the odd act that goes beyond the usual, shallow ‘bling-bling’: my riches, my bitches, my gun and my dick as I like to coin it.

I’ve also had these myriad of acts in to play live, with myself doing the sound mix, as well as interviewing them, in some of the most ‘live music unfriendly’ conditions:

1.) Headphones that don’t work. The acts hear just the mix going over the air–and in ‘one channel’ sometimes ,and worst of all, it’s not the mix coming out of my mixing board–where you can adjust the volume ,on and off the air, on separate things like vocals, guitars etc.

2. ) No permanent set up for a live music mixing board in the control room. Thus the setting up, tearing down and general chaos in doing live music at Co-op radio over the years. Our new engineer is working on this.

3. ) No talk back/communication system between the control room and the studio. So I’ve had to run back and forth, between the control room and the studio, in order to talk to the bands about levels and such, during what little time I have to conduct a soundcheck. This problem is ,thankfully, being looked at by our new engineer Anju.

4. ) The on-air studio is a very cluttered room. Removing furniture is the order of the day before even thinking about setting up mics and ,something that’s very alien to Co-op Radio, a monitor or 2 for ‘electric’ acts, so they can actually hear their vocals.

Using headphones is pointless, as the vocals are usually obscured through headphones for full on electric acts, even though I hear them just fine on my side of glass.

Some monumental technical challenges to overcome every week to say the very least.

CBC is so spoiled. hahahaha

But on to the hopefully good news:

Now: after 15 long years, Co-op is partaking in a frequency swap with The Peak.

By mid August of this very year of 2012, Co-op will be at 100.5 FM and said station at 102.7 FM.

I’m hoping this increases the station’s ,and thus Radio Bandcouver’s, profile after sticking it out for so long with the technical challenges and the great lack of resources we’ve endured over the years. ‘Burn out is imminent! Burn out is imminent!’

Bandcouver is ,most likely, the only radio show, certainly in Vancouver, where the host is also: the producer, the programmer, the researcher, the operator, the interviewer, the fundraiser, the promoter, the sound engineer and volunteering his time doing all this. Not to mention going into his own pocket to get decent sound equipment. In short: Ministry of Everything

Probably the only interviewer of bands who also mixes them on the air. I don’t have the benefit of a crew of 10 people assigned to separate duties.

Yes, this probably sounds egotistical ,but, I think someone who does all this on the air every week, and: goes out to local/live music shows, does sound at some of them, puts up posters for gigs, knows something about music etc and doesn’t have an un-bearably HUGE ego, ( I can be moody at times though ), is something to be applauded, not ignored.

I hope the swap with said station is the beginning of better things.

#1 The escape from obscurity. We do too much good for the community to be this obscure for this long.

#2 Better online equipment.

The end of constantly using bandcamp, facebook, myspace ( Nooo!!!! ) and Youtube pages, not to mention your own digital player/recorder, to play current music on the air with a PAINFULLY slow internet connection.

I’m told professional offline/online players will replace this painful process.

#3 The end of the ‘crappy MONO’ era. Where music mixed for stereo sounds pathetic on the air. ie: vocals missing, half of the guitar mix is missing. You get the picture.

Being in stereo on the radio ,as well as online, would be a huge, welcome change.

It ,for one, makes mixing bands a hell of a lot more fun.

I won’t go into the sound problems Co-op Radio’s been having online recently. haha

#4 A much more ‘live music friendly’ set up for live bands, which doesn’t require moving furniture, and loads of unnecessary clutter in the room.

This is in the opening stages of being realized, thanks to our new engineer ,Anju, and her technical assistant Nancy.

*This may even inspire more programmers at Co-op to have live music on their shows, making Co-op radio a much more vibrant and exciting place.

#5 More revenue for the station ,and for Radio Bandcouver, to keep it going.

We have money coming in from the swap to cover new equipment and promotional costs. But that doesn’t cover the regular, everyday expenses to continue running the station. Yes, we’re getting money with the swap ,but, that doesn’t get us out of the woods by any stretch.

Co-op is a listener-powered/community driven radio station. We want to keep it that way. Even with all its technical shortcomings, the station empowers you-the listener, and lets you create your own content with your own show if you so wish.

Back with the tour:

#6 Technical assistance with setting up and tearing it down of mics, stands and cables, instead of doing it all myself all the time.

#7 Energy freed up to produce live shows for the Bandcouver program to further increase its profile and revenue.

#8 Not having to do all the promotion and fundraising for the show by myself all the time.

By the way, if you have a few bucks to spare to help keep Radio Bandcouver on the air, the number is 604-684-8494 or on-air at 604-684-7561.

You can also pick up a Listener’s Guide at most public libraries and record stores like Audiopile, Zulu, Neptoon and Red Cat. Just fill out the form on the back.

Remember to put your finnacial support towards Radio Bandcouver. The accountant needs to know which show the money’s going towards.

Musicians are part of the community too.

There’s more ,but, that’s what’s been screaming to get out of my head right now.